Uti Possidetis

A term used in INTERNATIONAL LAW to indicate that the parties to a particular treaty are to retain possession of that which they forcibly seized during a war.

A treaty ending a war may adopt the principle of uti possidetis, the principle of status quo ante bellum (Latin for "the state of things before the war"), or a combination of the two. Upon a default of any treaty stipulation, the doctrine of uti possidetis prevails.